a t l a s
by Immoroita
Summary: parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. [iroh ii. x asami x bolin] cover picture by smarny on tumblr.
1. seize the day

**Author's Note: **To celebrate Book Two, I'm taking on a new project! Brohsami is my newest OTP/brOTP, so here's a series of ficlets based around Bolin, Iroh, and Asami, using prompts from Livejournal's 64damn-prompts. All three of them will feature in each one somehow – sometimes it'll be fluffy, sometimes it'll be angsty, and sometimes it'll just be plain old fun. Mako, Korra, Tenzin, and everybody else will make appearances, but each one will mainly focus on one of our lovely trio, or all of them.

By the way – a little Easter egg for you all. Look at the first letter of each chapter (the actual writing) for a hidden sentence by the time it's done!

(Also, because a certain person made me do it, this story is dedicated to Jiyun and the Twabebes.)

**Summary: **parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. [iroh ii./asami/bolin]

**Rating: **T

**Chapter Synopsis: **Asami is very much an early bird. Iroh and Bolin are not.

**Prompt: **seize the day

* * *

**T**here was a quiet chirping noise from outside. Sunlight shone softly into the room. The world was quiet and serene.

Bolin woke up that morning to something tickling his nose. Green eyes opening slowly, the earthbender yawned – twice – and turned his head slightly to the left to see Asami Sato sandwiched in between him and Iroh, who was still asleep. A lock of her hair had made its way onto his face. Gently, he moved it back and rolled over to face the wall.

There were only two things his fatigued brain was aware of at that moment.

One – it was way too early.

Two – if he kept trying to think he would fall asleep immediately.

He was just about to do just that when there was movement behind him and Asami yawned, sat up, and slipped away from the bed.

Bolin shrugged a little. That was fine with him. She could be a morning person if she wanted to be, as long as she didn't try to –

"Hey! Aren't you going to wake up, too?"

The woman was leaning across the bed, tapping Bolin's shoulder. The probender groaned and pulled the blanket completely off Iroh and over his head. "Go away, Asami."

He could practically hear the (really endearing) pout that she definitely had right now. "No way. You're getting up right now."

Iroh was still fast asleep. Bolin envied him.

He turned his head slowly, but to his surprise, Asami wasn't there. If he'd been thinking clearly, he would have suspected something – after all, she'd never just _give up_ on something like this – but as it was, he was completely okay with letting her do whatever she was going to do.

_Splash!_

Scratch that.

Ice cold water suddenly hit both their faces. With a girlish scream that he would later deny, Bolin spasmed and bumped into the newly awakened Iroh, who yelped just as girlishly and fell off the bed.

There was a low groaning sound from the floor. "Why are you doing this to us?" Iroh mumbled quietly, voice stifled by the floorboards, which his face was pressed firmly against. "I never did anything to hurt you…"

Asami laughed and bent down to help Iroh up. "Today's my day off! I've been so busy lately, what with everything that's going on with – you know – Future Industries and everything. So I'm going to make today count."

"Let me guess," Iroh said, leaning against the wall and scratching his head. "You're dragging us with you."

The woman twisted a strand of hair around her finger and did that endearing pout again, casting a sultry glance at both of them in turn. "Please?"

Well, they couldn't very well say no to _that._


	2. connection

**Author's Note: **Once again, dedicated to Jiyun and the Twabebes. (I feel dumb.)

**Summary: **parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. [iroh ii./asami/bolin]

**Rating: **T

**Chapter Synopsis: **There are a lot of things they never knew about each other.

**Prompt: **connection

* * *

"**H**ow could it end like this?" Bolin lamented quietly, leaning against Iroh's back and sighing dramatically. "Tied up in an Equalist cell, waiting for someone to come and rescue us… but nobody will ever come, because they don't know where we are! I wish Pabu were here. He'd chew through these ropes. Who would ever have thought that I would - ?"

"Bolin," Asami said irritably, rubbing her bindings against the wall and shuffling around. "We'll survive. Stop worrying."

Iroh nodded in agreement, turning his head as much as he could to see the two of them. "Are you both doing all right?"

"Nope," said Bolin.

"No," said Asami.

"Good," said Iroh, turning back around. "Now we just have to wait."

* * *

Boredom, it seemed, was the first obstacle that they had to face. The Equalists were actually quite generous when it came to food, untying their prisoners and keeping a stern eye on them as they ate, then tying them up again after they finished.

After the first meal, Iroh and Bolin were tied up separately and all three were put in different corners of the room. The three of them lay around gloomily, hearing nothing but water dripping in one corner of the room and something that may have been a rat scurrying around somewhere in the ceiling.

"Can you firebend the ropes off?" Bolin asked suddenly, looking at Iroh.

The General experimentally shot a small burst of flame out from his hands, which did nothing. "No can do. They would have thought of that beforehand, anyway."

"Right," Bolin said glumly. The three of them fell into silence once again.

"Did you ever think it would end like this?"

"Shut up, Bolin," Asami snapped.

Iroh rolled his eyes and shuffled over to lean against the wall. "Well, since we're here with nowhere else to go, what should we do?"

The black-haired woman sitting opposite him tilted her head sideways to look at both of them in disbelief. "That's easy. We figure out how to escape."

Her words were met with silence.

"Yeah, but seriously, what should we do? Talk about our feelings? Because seriously, dude, that's lame," Bolin said in his usual noncommittal way, accidentally falling over and failing to get up again.

"I _was_ being serious!"

"So was I. Talking about feelings sucks."

Bolin rolled over and looked at Iroh upside down. "By the way, General, you're a prince, right?"

"Yes," Iroh said stiffly, looking at the earthbender. "I'm second in line to the throne."

"Interesting," Bolin said slyly, still struggling to get upright again. "A dashing prince like you should have a princess at home, right? Well, anyway, I was just wondering about some stuff, because seriously, I have _really_ bad luck with girls. I mean, look at what happened with Korra – that's some crazy bad luck right there, bro – "

Iroh cut into the long spiel. "Actually, um, I don't have… that is to say… I'm not engaged in any relations as of now."

An exasperated huff came from Asami's corner. The heiress faltered as Bolin and Iroh stared at her. "Well, he said it in a funny way, okay? Don't be so pompous all the time."

The earthbender was the first to laugh, and Iroh followed suit. They were just a bit maniacal from being cooped up, he supposed – it shouldn't have been funny, but it was to them just then. It certainly lightened the mood.

An hour or so later, the three of them were lying on the floor in a circle, heads next to each other. Asami was in the middle of an in-depth explanation of the Sato-mobile and Iroh was listening patiently (after all, this was the machinery that had taken his entire fleet down).

"This is nice," the earthbender said suddenly, right as Asami began talking about how the engine was the most advanced in the world.

"If we weren't locked up, it would be even nicer," Iroh said dryly. There was a lingering silence that followed his words, and Bolin burst out laughing. "Iroh, you made a joke!"

"And you called him Iroh," Asami said. "That's a first." Iroh could hear the broad smile in her voice.

"Finally, you smiled," he murmured quietly. "You look nicer when you do."

"Aw, thanks," Asami said with a little giggle. Redness crept over Iroh's cheeks and Bolin snickered.

There was silence again. Once again, Bolin broke it.

"Uh, yeah, so… you guys don't happen to know where a guy can go to the bathroom around here, do you?"


	3. charm

**Author's Note: **Yet again – Jiyun and the Twabebes. Also, I will be updating every day, hopefully.

**Summary: **parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. [iroh ii./asami/bolin]

**Rating: **T

**Chapter Synopsis: **Asami Sato has always been the temptress, the one who can get others to do her bidding. Only two people in the world have ever resisted.

**Prompt: **charm

* * *

**E**verything Asami wanted, Asami got.

Her father had always made sure that she wanted for nothing and spoiled his daughter shamelessly. She learned the delicate art of manipulation from him – she watched him as he carefully steered business deals the way he wanted them to go, silently noting down the slippery techniques that he employed. Coupled with a pair of smoldering green eyes, gently curled black hair, and a sultry smile that could bring any man to their knees, Asami did not find it hard to get whatever she wanted (especially out of men).

She'd gotten so used to it, in fact, that she used her charms on people for the littlest things ("Mako, pass the sugar, please?" "Uh, okay. Here you go."). It never failed.

The first failure came when she was 22.

Sitting in the kitchen that morning, she was reading the paper avidly, chewing on buttered toast, and looked up to see Bolin walk in, rubbing his eyes and yawning.

"Good morning," she greeted absentmindedly, finishing off her toast.

"Morning," the earthbender returned groggily, heading over to the fridge.

"Is Iroh up yet?"

"Nah. He's still asleep."

Asami nodded thoughtfully and put down her paper. "Boli-in," she said, propping her head up on one hand. "Could you get me another piece of toast?"

He paused, turned to look at her, and laughed shortly. "Sorry, 'Sami, I'm busy with my own breakfast. Do it yourself." And he resumed looking through the shelves.

The heiress' eyebrows raised and she put on her most persuasive voice. "I'm busy with the paper and all this mess with Future Industries… surely you could get me some toast?"

Bolin had stuck his entire head into the fridge. "Sorry!" he called out, voice muffled. "I have to get over to Mako's soon to bring some of my stuff over."

Asami pursed her lips, but pushing it too far was just asking for trouble. "That's fine, Bolin. The cereal's in the other section."

"Ahhh," the earthbender said in relief, sounding as though he'd just achieved total enlightenment.

* * *

Later that day, as Asami looked through her photos and sorted them into groups, Iroh walked into their room and sat down on the bed, picking up an old photo of her. "You were a lovely child," the General remarked with a chuckle, putting it back. "How are you sorting these?"

Asami, still confused over how Bolin had managed not to succumb to her persuasive ways, looked up at him and said: "Oh, well, older photos go here, newer ones go here, and, um… the ones with my father go over there." She pointed at the separate piles as she spoke.

"Hmm," Iroh mused, eyes sweeping over the mass of photos. "Interesting."

The woman tossed some of her hair back and sent Iroh one of her Looks. "I'm a bit tight on time – could you help me sort these pictures out while I run down to the store? Please?"

Throwing a 'please' in – not her proudest moment, to be sure, but desperate times did call for desperate measures. However, Iroh simply looked at her with a smile and said: "Ah, don't worry about it. I already went on my way back. Shopping is truly the most mundane thing ever invented, by the way. I don't understand why you women love it so much."

Asami sighed and leaned against the bed. The door opened in the other room and a cheerful voice called out: "I'm ho-ome!"

"We're in here," Iroh replied.

Bolin stepped into the room carrying a box of things. "Hey, guys, could you help me get all this stuff out?" His gaze fell upon Asami and he frowned in confusion. "Hey, 'Sami, is something wrong?"

"Oh, well," she said wistfully. "It's just that I used to be able to get people to do whatever I wanted. It's petty and stupid, but it's helped me a lot in a lot of places." The woman put her head on one of her hands. "Am I doing something wrong?"

There was silence as Bolin and Iroh looked at each other, and Asami sighed a little. _Now they'll both hate me and think I'm selfish._

Iroh shrugged off his coat and Bolin put his box down. Both of them sat down on either side of Asami.

"Don't get so upset over a little thing like this," Bolin said with a reassuring smile, nudging her. "Let me guess – you used to shoot people those looks where your eyes get all dark? Well, ah, we've seen that one a lot. It just doesn't work too well on us. Don't get so hung up over it."

"Although," Iroh added thoughtfully. "Don't give that look to anybody else. It makes me unreasonably angry."

"I think that's what you call jealousy," the earthbender said.

"Mm, that, too."

Asami laughed. "So," she teased. "Should I not look at you that way anymore?"

"It's distracting," Iroh said.

"But I like it!" Bolin added hurriedly.

"I know something even more distracting," she said with a little smirk, leaning over, and there was no more talking or attempted manipulation after that.


	4. tragedy

**Author's Note: **Yup. This prompt was literally begging for angst to be written. I'm sorry.

I was using an all lowercase style because tragedies look sadder and more poetic in lowercase. To me, at least. Also, Jiyun and the Twabebes.

**Summary: **parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. [iroh ii./asami/bolin]

**Rating: **T

**Chapter Synopsis: **there is only red and there's a darkness closing in around her and the only thing she knows is the tears dripping onto her face that aren't her own.

**Prompt: **tragedy

* * *

**e**lectricity crackles and sizzles the air around her. there is no time to rest as she flips and kicks and takes out enemies one by one. it's sort of exhilarating, in a way, and a little bit terrifying, too – the kind of power she wields. she could kill anyone here if she wanted to, and hesitates a little bit.

but then someone's gloved fist shoots past her head and she remembers it works both ways. there is no hesitation after that.

_korra_, she thinks desperately as she dodges a kick and knocks the equalist who attacked her unconscious. _whatever you're doing, i hope it works._

she's backed up against a wall by three equalists but still she keeps fighting, sweeping the legs out from beneath one of them and frying another one's eyebrows. he retreats in a panic.

asami laughs to herself as the last one backs away cautiously. her eyes flicker over to where bolin and iroh have taken down the ones surrounding them and are now headed over to her.

they catch her gaze and smile. she smiles back.

she's still smiling when the lightning shoots through her body and she stumbles backwards, a metal hook on the wall sinking seamlessly into her back.

the ground leans up to welcome her as she falls down, taking the hook down with her. a faint, surprised smile is still plastered onto her face. there's a horrified scream and the sound of quickening footsteps. the equalist who shoved her back looks stricken for a moment before somebody knocks him over.

someone's stroking her face. someone's whispering into her ear.

there's nothing but red and darkness and tears that don't belong to her. "asami," someone whispers. "asami," the other person echoes.

"iroh," she murmurs. "bolin."

her hands are gripped tightly – one is large and warm and calloused, and the other is soft and smooth and comforting. she laughs quietly, and it turns into a wince. with every breath, every movement, she can feel the metal hook shifting around inside her back.

the world's going dark. she can feel herself suffocating. her throat swells up with tears that will never be shed.

"i – " she breathes out, and it's her last. the sky is dark and the birds have stopped singing and everything is empty.


End file.
